Xiaomi’s modern Redmi smartphones have become an integral part of everyday life, providing users with powerful tools for work and entertainment. In the process of active use of the device, it often becomes necessary to capture the contents of the screen: whether it is an important dialogue, an error in the application, a route map or just a funny moment in correspondence.
The MIUI shell interface, or its modern version of HyperOS, offers many options for doing this, far beyond the standard button combination. Understanding all the methods available allows you to significantly improve the efficiency of interaction with the gadget and saves time in critical situations. In this article, we will discuss in detail each available way to create screenshots, and also consider the settings that will help automate the process.
Whether you’re a beginner who’s just bought your first smartphone or a seasoned user looking for new chips, this material will be useful.We’ll touch on not only basic techniques, but advanced features like long screenshots and voice controls. Get ready to learn how to turn your Redmi into an even more user-friendly tool for working with information.
Classical method using physical buttons
The most common and reliable way to capture a screenshot on any Android device, including Xiaomi smartphones, involves using a physical key combination. This method works even if the touch screen temporarily does not respond or the system interface freezes. To perform the action, you need to simultaneously press and briefly hold the volume down and the power button.
It is important to keep the right timing: pressing should be simultaneous, but not too long. If you press the buttons for a few seconds, the smartphone will perceive this as a command to call the emergency menu or turn off the device, depending on the settings. Usually a fraction of a second is enough for the system to register the command and emit a characteristic sound of the camera shutter.
After the successful execution of the action, a notification will appear at the top of the screen with a thumbnail of the shot taken. The button combination is universal and works in all applications, games and menus, except for some DRM-protected windows (for example, Netflix or banking applications in incognito mode), where the creation of screenshots is blocked at the security level.
- 📱 Press the power button and volume down at the same time.
- ⏱️ Hold no more than 1 second so as not to trigger the off menu.
- 🔔 Check the top corner of the screen for success notification.
- 🚫 The method will not work in secure applications (banks, streaming).
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If you have a thumb, try using the palm edge of the other hand to press two spaced buttons simultaneously, which is often more convenient.
It is worth noting that on some models with a side fingerprint scanner combined with the on button, the mechanics of the pressing may differ due to the shape of the keys. In such cases, users often resort to alternative methods described below, but the physical combination remains the fastest for blind printing when you are not looking at the screen.
Three-finger screenshots and MIUI gestures
MIUI is famous for its richness of features for customizing controls, and one of the most popular is the swipe screenshot, which allows you to take screenshots without using physical buttons, which is especially convenient when the smartphone is lying on a table or holding a heavy object with one hand.
To enable this feature, you need to go to the settings, find the partition responsible for additional features, and activate the switch. Then, swiping three fingers from top to bottom down the center of the screen will instantly create a picture, the system can vibrate or emit a sound, confirming the action.
⚠️ Note: Three fingers may conflict with gestures in some games or drawing apps. If you notice that screenshots are created randomly during play, temporarily turn off this option in the settings.
In addition, newer versions of HyperOS firmware and recent MIUI updates have added additional gestures, such as tapping on a screen or swiping a finger in a particular corner if supported by established themes, but the basic three-finger gesture remains the standard and most stable solution from developers.
To activate the gesture with three fingers, follow the following steps:
- Open the Settings app on your device.
- Go to the Additional (or Advanced Settings) section.
- Select Screenshot.
- Activate the switchboard opposite the option Three fingers.
Once this feature is enabled, the process of creating screenshots becomes much more intuitive: you can capture content at any time just by swiping across the display, and this is especially true for devices with large diagonals, where reaching the top buttons is physically difficult.
Use of the control panel and the multitasking menu
If physical buttons are uncomfortable and gestures are not configured, you can always use the interface software. Xiaomi smartphones have a built-in shortcut to create screenshots that you can add to the control center (notification curtain), which allows you to take screenshots in one click without detachment from the current context.
To add a shortcut, you need to swipe the notification bar from top to bottom. In the button menu that opens, find an icon with a picture of scissors or a rectangle. If it is not on the first page, flip to the right or click on the edit button (usually three dots or a pencil) to drag the Screenshot icon to the active area.
Another software method is available through the running app menu, and if you're in multitasking mode (a list of open windows), action buttons are usually displayed under each application window, and there's often a button to create a snapshot of the current window's screen, which is convenient when you need to quickly save information from multiple open tabs.
| Method | Speed of access | Dependence on settings | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buttons | Instantly. | No (works by default) | Anywhere except secure applications |
| Gesture (3 fingers) | Very quickly. | Including in the menu is required | In most applications |
| Label in the curtain | Medium (you need to open the curtain) | Adding a button is required | Everywhere. |
| Voice assistant | Depends on the network response. | Internet and setup required | Wherever the assistant works |
The use of software buttons in the notification curtain is especially relevant for users who prefer one-handed control, so you don't have to reach for buttons on the case or make complex gestures, just one touch of the screen at the top of it.
☑️ Quick access settings
The function of a long screenshot (scroll)
One of the most useful features in the Xiaomi ecosystem is the ability to create long screenshots, or “scrollshots,” which is indispensable when you need to save long correspondence in a messenger, an article in a browser or a social network feed in its entirety without taking a dozen individual frames.
The process starts as a simple screenshot in any convenient way (buttons or gestures) and immediately after you take a picture, an additional button with a down arrow or a Scrolling arrow will appear in the upper right corner of the thumbnail that appears, and clicking on it will automatically scroll down the page.
The system will automatically scrub content and stitch images into one long image, and you can stop the process at any time by touching the screen or pressing the stop button, but the technical limitation is that the maximum length of this image is limited by screen resolution and RAM, usually around 100 screens.
⚠️ Note: When creating a long screenshot, avoid touching the screen and sudden movements, as this can knock down the “linking” algorithm, and the final image will be with artifacts or tears.
A long screenshot is saved in the gallery as a single file in the PNG or JPG format. This is convenient for sending documents or instructions. If you scroll the wrong way, or you missed a big moment, just stop recording and start again from the right place.
Voice control and timer
For users who are uncomfortable with using their hands, or those who prefer voice control, Xiaomi offers integration with Google Assistant and its own voice assistant. You can just say the phrase "OK, Google, take a screenshot" or "Take a screenshot of the screen," and the system will execute the command.
This method requires a stable Internet connection and a pre-configured voice assistant, which is especially useful in situations where the phone is locked in a car holder or in a hard-to-reach location, and voice control in MIUI also allows you to assign your own voice commands for various actions.
Another interesting feature is the screenshot timer, which allows you to delay the creation of a picture by 3 or 10 seconds, which is ideal for those cases when you want to capture a pop-up menu, a context window or any interface element that disappears when you touch the screen.
- 🗣️ Activate Google Assistant or Mi Voice.
- ⏳ Say the command "Take a screenshot".
- ⏰ For a timer, use the screenshot with a timer widget in the Quick Actions menu.
- 📸 Ideal for shooting pop-up windows and menus.
How to set a screenshot timer?
It takes a little practice to use a timer, and you have to open the menu when you start the timer, but before it goes off, and usually 3 seconds is enough to open the context menu.
Where to look for saved screenshots and how to edit them
Once you've created a screenshot, the system automatically stores it in the device's internal memory, and you can find the file in a number of ways, and the fastest way is to click on the notification that appears immediately after the image, and this will open up an editor where you can crop the image immediately, draw pictures or text.
If you missed the notification, go to the Gallery app. There will be a separate album called Screenshots (or Screenshots).In newer versions of HyperOS, the gallery has become smarter and can sort snapshots by date or application in which they were taken.
Files are also accessible through a file manager. The path to the folder is usually: Internal Memory → DCIM → Screenshots or Internal Memory → MIUI → gallery → cloud, depending on the firmware version and synchronization settings. Knowing the path is useful when connecting the phone to a computer for mass file transfer.
The built-in screenshot editor in MIUI allows you to perform basic operations: framing, adding text, drawing arrows and figures, as well as blurring confidential information (the “Magic” function).
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All screenshots are saved by default to the Screenshots folder in the Gallery, but their physical path in the file system may vary depending on the Android and MIUI version.
Solution and quality setting
Sometimes users run into problems: screenshots are not created, take up too much space or low quality. If the screenshot does not work, check if the device memory is full.
The quality of the screenshots depends on the resolution of your Redmi screen, and you can't change the resolution of the screenshot itself in the settings, it's always equal to the native resolution of the matrix, but you can reduce the quality of the file you save by changing the format from PNG to JPG in the screenshot settings, which saves space but loses detail.
⚠️ Note: If screenshots are no longer saved after the system update, try clearing the Gallery or Screenshot app cache through the application management menu.
It's also worth checking the permissions for apps. If you're using a third-party launcher or app to take screenshots, make sure that the privacy settings allow it to access the screen and storage. Without those permissions, the feature can't function.
To clean the space, you can set up automatic removal of old screenshots or synchronize them with the cloud Xiaomi Cloud or Google Photos. This will free up the internal memory of the smartphone, leaving access to the archive of images in the cloud.